Apparatus and method for continuous rework fermentation

ABSTRACT

A method and system for the reclamation and re-use of rework dough created in the process of forming a final good. Initially, the reworks are formed into a batter into which a catalyst is placed. Subsequently the batter is cooled and stored until it is added to a new batch of dough. Through this method and system there may be a nearly total re-use of rework dough.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates generally to the creation dough,and more particularly to the use of rework in such dough.

BACKGROUND

[0002] In the baking and pastry industry, several types of pastry doughmay be used in the creation of such breads and pastries that aregenerally sold. Furthermore, processes are generally known in the artfor creating such dough. One such dough and generally known process isthat of making laminated dough in particular for use in croissants andpizza crust and other such pastries. Generally, a new mixture of flour,yeast and other necessary materials are mixed together to form a dough.The dough is typically fermented or aged for an extended period of timeto produce the desired results and taste. This dough is then extruded,folded and laminated with particular fats to produce the desiredfinished product. The extended time of fermentation and the increasedeffort and labor of laminating the dough and adding the additionallayers of fats produces an expensive dough material. However, in thecreation of the final product, there is often extensive rework, alsoknown as scrap, material that is produced that is unusable as a finalproduct. Therefore, it is desirable to produce a method of reintroducingthe rework into the original dough matrix to produce a final product.

[0003] Generally, rework may be added to an original or a new productbatch. However, the rework generally has detrimental effects on a newproduct batch; therefore, rework may only be added in small amounts soas not to destroy an entire new batch. Generally, the limitations on theaddition of rework is in the range of 10-15% to rework based on totalbatch weight or less to a new batch. Therefore, any remaining reworkcannot be reused is merely disposed of or sold as scrap.

[0004] Conventionally, the reworks would only be allowed to be used at aratio of 10-15% to a new batch of batter. This is generally due to thefact that when yeast is allowed to continue its processes in the batter10, it dies and releases glutathione which destroys the protein of thegluten of the dough. When the gluten of the dough is destroyed, thedough may no longer be used to form products and generally becomes wasteproduct that must be disposed. Therefore, in excess of 80% of the reworkis merely disposed of since it cannot be reused. That rework becomes awaste of money and time in the production of the original dough andfinal product. Consequently, an increase of rework that may be used in anew batch is desirable so as to save the 80% rework that cannot be usedto produce new batter and a final product.

[0005] Also, the reuse of rework that is generally known in the artleaves a great amount of discretion and possibility of error to thebaker on the baking floor. This is due to the fact that the reworkincludes yeast which is continuing in its starvation cycle until itwould destroy the gluten that is in the rework product. Therefore, thebaker is left with the discretion and the choice of placing a certainamount of rework into a new dough process. This allows for greatvariation in final product that is produced from a process and batterthat includes rework. Therefore, it is particularly desirable to includeor create a process that allows for the reuse of a high percentage ofrework without having the inconsistency that is created by the currentuse of rework.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0006] The present invention provides a method and process forincreasing the amount of rework that may be placed into a new batch ofdough to an amount greatly exceeding the generally accepted 10-15% andreaching nearly total reuse of rework that may be reintroduced into anew batch of dough. Furthermore, the process of the present invention,may allow for a continuous reintroduction of reprocessed rework into anew batch of dough.

[0007] Generally, the rework will be reprocessed into a batterconsistency having an initial specific gravity between 0.50 and 0.80 bythe addition of warm water. To this reprocessing batter, a catalyst isadded which quickens the dough to the stage in which it may be stored.Once the catalyst has taken its effect and the batter has been furtherprocessed and cooled, the reprocessed batter is then stored and lateradded to a new batch of dough. Once the batter has been fullyreprocessed, it may then be added back to the original batter as a highreuse of the reworks from an original batch. This allows the originalreworks to be reused in a more efficient manner so as to reduce overallcost. Furthermore, the reprocessed batter, after being added to a newbatch of dough decreases the fermentation period of the new batch. Thisfurther reduces cost of producing the laminated dough by using thisprocess.

[0008] Further areas of applicability of the present invention willbecome apparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. Itshould be understood however that the detailed description and specificexamples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, areintended for purposes of illustration only, since various changes andmodifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will becomeapparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] The present invention will become more fully understood from thedetailed description and the accompanying drawings, wherein:

[0010]FIG. 1 is a flow chart showing the processing of the reworks inaccordance with the present invention;

[0011]FIG. 2 is a schematic representation of the system required tocarry out the rework processing in accordance with the presentinvention;

[0012]FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a mixer used according to thepresent invention;

[0013]FIG. 4 is a plan view of an agitator of the mixer illustrated inFIG. 3;

[0014]FIG. 5 is an end view of the mixer illustrated in FIG. 3; and

[0015]FIG. 6 is a chart showing the time-temperature profile forprocessing the reworks in accordance with the present invention;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0016] With reference to FIG. 1, the general process for continuousrework fermentation is illustrated in flow chart 8 and generallyincludes the addition of a catalyst and hot water to rework which iscombined with fresh ingredients to form a dough. In particular, freshingredients 10 and reprocessed batter 12 are mixed together at block 14in a commercial volume batch, large enough for use in industry orcommercial bakery processes. In this case, fresh ingredients 10 includeat least flour, sugar, yeast and possibly other chemical leaveningagents for the production of dough, and in particular laminated dough.The mixing process 14 includes the dough ingredients being mixed andlaminated with the other fats that are necessary to produce laminateddough. This is generally known in the art and summarily includes theworking of the fresh ingredients and reprocessed batter 12 into a dough,which may include kneading, that is then laminated with fat products toproduce a laminated dough. The dough must be fermented or proofed atblock 16.

[0017] After fermentation 16, a particular pastry, pizza dough, or otheritem is formed in final processing at block 18 to produce a finalproduct 20. The final product 20 may then be finished and sold. However,the final processing 18 also produces rework 22 as a by-product thereof.This rework 22 is then reprocessed through a series of steps 24-28hereinafter described to form a reprocessed batter 12 which may becombined with fresh ingredients at mixing 14. It is to be understoodthat the laminated dough process is merely an exemplary dough processfor purposes of illustration. One skilled in the art will recognize thatthe present invention has application to other product produced fromother batters. Simply, the laminated dough is among the most expensive,therefore, the use of such a reprocessed batter would be the mostadvantageous thus it is used as the preferred example.

[0018] The rework 22 then begins a continuous rework fermentationwherein rework 22 is gathered together and placed in a suitable mixer tobe reclaimed. After the rework 22 is gathered together, a measuredamount of hot water 30 having a temperature between approximately 85 and110 degrees Fahrenheit is added to the rework 22. Preferably, the hotwater 30 has a temperature between 90 and 105 degrees and mostpreferably 105 degrees Fahrenheit. The mixture of rework 22 and hotwater 30 is processed to create a reprocessing batter. The reprocessingbatter has a viscosity which is generally the consistency of a pancakebatter with an initial specific gravity between approximately 0.50 or0.80, preferably between 0.60 and 0.70, and most batter, preferablyapproximately 0.70.

[0019] Next, a catalyst 32 is added to the reprocessing batter. Thecatalyst 32 of the present invention which includes table sugar orsucrose, dextrose, vital wheat gluten, a suitable enzyme and a suitablecarrier. As presently preferred, L-cystine is used as a suitable enzymeand flour or soy is used as a suitable carrier. The formation ofreprocessing batter, that is to say the mixing of the rework 22, hotwater 30 and catalyst 32 should be completed in approximately 90 secondsand most preferably 60 seconds. Therefore, the addition of the hot water30 to the rework 22 and the addition of the catalyst 32 to thesubsequent reprocessing batter should occur rapidly such that thereprocessing batter is maintained at an elevated temperature ofapproximately 105° F.

[0020] For a better understanding of the present invention, the functionof the catalyst 32 will be explained. The catalyst 32 speeds up theprocesses of the yeast remaining in rework 22. In this way, the yeastmoves quickly to the end of its life cycle in producing the gasnecessary to raise or proof the dough. If the yeast were simply leftalone in the reprocessed batter without the catalyst 32, it would die,destroying the gluten and protein in the batter as discussed above.However, with the addition of the catalyst 32, the yeast in thereprocessing batter quickly proceeds through its process and does notdie as it usually would if left in the original rework 20. Without anextensive review of biology of yeast, once the sugar in the rework 22runs out the yeast dies of starvation without naturally expiring leavingsufficient amounts of enzymes and such to destroy the gluten and proteinof the dough. However, with the addition of the catalyst, fermentationof the yeast is accelerated. Thus, when the yeast naturally expires,there are no enzymes left to destroy the proteins and the gluten of thebatter. In this way, the reprocessed batter does not adversely effectthe fresh ingredient to which it is added. Thus, the reprocessed batter12 may be added as a nearly 100% usage with fresh ingredients 10 asopposed to conventional use of rework at approximately 10-15% usage.

[0021] With reference again to FIG. 1, as presently preferred, thecooling of the reprocessing batter with the catalyst 32 is under acontrolled condition. As an initial summary, the temperature of thereprocessing batter is reduced at block 26 from the original temperatureof the hot water 30 to a storage temperature of approximately 35 to 55degrees Fahrenheit in a generally linear manner over approximately 30minutes. Preferably, the reprocessed batter 12 is cooled to atemperature in the range of 40 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Therefore, thereprocessed batter 12 with the catalyst 32 is pumped to a heat exchangerto remove heat from the reprocessing batter 12 and allow for the gradualcooling over approximately 30 minutes. Once the controlled cooling 26 ofthe reprocessing batter is completed, the batter is stored at block 28in a refrigerated container at approximately 40 to 50 degrees Fahrenheitwhere it is available to be mixed with fresh ingredients 10 at block 14.

[0022] The following example is an illustration of the manner in whichthe present invention is carried out. As long as the proportions remainrelatively stable, smaller or larger batches of the reprocessing batterand fresh ingredients may be produced. A typical dough without theaddition of the reprocessed batter would generally include approximately100 pounds of flour, twelve pounds of sugar, one-half pound of salt,three pounds of yeast, and 50 pounds of water. In accordance with thepresent invention, reprocessing batter is used in place of the water.Specifically, a dough may include 100 pounds of flour, twelve pounds ofsugar, one-half pound of salt, 3 pounds of yeast, and 150 pounds of thereprocessed batter. Since the reprocessed batter is formulated usingapproximately 250 pounds of original rework, 150 pounds of water andapproximately twenty pounds of catalyst, 150 pounds of reprocessedbatter includes approximately 50 pounds of water.

[0023] In this specific example, the catalyst 32 includes approximatelytwelve pounds table sugar, four pounds dextrose, two pounds wheatgluten, four ounces of L-cystine and two pounds of flour for a totalweight of approximately twenty pounds. More generally, the catalystincludes between 58-62% sugar, 18-22% dextrose, 8-12% wheat gluten,0.75-1.5% of L-cystine, and 8-12% of flour by weight. Most preferably,the catalyst will include a 59-61% sugar, 19-21% dextrose, 9-11% gluten,9-11% flour, and 0.75-1.50% L-cystine by weight. Thus, the reprocessedbatter introduced into the new batter includes approximately 50 poundsof water and 100 pounds of other ingredients including the flour, thenaturally-expired yeast, and the other sugar products from the catalyst32 and the reworks 22.

[0024] The dough including the reprocessed batter may be used just as adough made entirely from fresh ingredient would be used in theproduction of final products. Therefore, there is no need of additionalproducts to use the reprocessing batter. Furthermore, no exceptional ornew equipment, (other than that used during the continuous reworkfermentation) would need to be used to produce the laminated doughbeyond that which is used already, even with the use of a new batterincluding the reprocessing batter. The creation of reprocessing batterin this manner allows for a consistent reprocessing batter. Sincefermentation of the yeast in the reprocessing batter has beenaccelerated through the use of the catalyst, there is nothing left inthe reprocessing batter that may destroy any of the proteins or otherconstituents of the batter. Therefore, as long as the reprocessingbatter is stored at the proper temperatures, it may be used at any timefrom immediately after its creation through an extended delay withoutany special discretion or knowledge of the baker producing new batter.Therefore, inconsistencies that may have been produced through the useof conventional methods of using rework are no longer present due to thecatalyst and the reprocessing method disclosed herein.

[0025] An additional advantage of the present invention is that thefermentation period of a dough including the reprocessing batter may besignificantly decreased. Conventionally, the inclusion of a longfermentation period at block 16 is needed. When using an all freshingredient batter, the fermentation period 16 is generally between 12and 24 hours. Such an extensive fermentation period is necessary for theyeast to produce the gases to proof the dough and to create the desiredfermented taste in the final products 20. However, with the use of thereprocessed batter 12 in combination with the fresh ingredients 10, ashortened fermentation period, on the order of 4-6 hours or less asrequired by a specific application, may be utilized. The fermentationperiod may be so decreased because the reprocessed batter which has beencompletely fermented imparts that taste to the new batter when it isadded thereto. Therefore, an extended fermentation period is not needed,only a period long enough to proof the dough.

[0026] With reference to FIG. 2 the continuous rework fermentationsystem 40 for producing the reprocessed batter is illustrated. A mixer42, suitable for production of commercial amounts of laminated dough, isnecessary into which the reworks 22 may be placed. As previouslydiscussed, the reprocessed batter, which has an initial specific gravitybetween 0.50 and 0.80, is produced by mixing hot water 30 along with thecatalyst 32 and the reworks 22 in the mixer 42.

[0027] With particular reference to FIGS. 3-5, a preferred mixer 42 forthe disclosed reprocessing apparatus is shown. Particularly, mixer 42includes a bowl 44, a shaft 46 with rotating tines 48, fixed tines 50affixed to the bottom of the bowl 42. In this way, the shaft 46 havingrotating tines 48 affixed thereto may spin about an axis A within themixer 42 mixing the reprocessing batter that is placed therein. Withparticular reference to FIG. 5, it may be seen that the rotating tines48 having an alternating orientation to form a series of “V” shape. Forexample, a first tine 52 is oriented from the upper left to lower rightdirection while a second tine 54 is oriented from the lower left to theupper right direction. This pattern is repeated along the length of theshaft 46. In this way, the orientation of the rotating mixing tines 48allow for the ease of mixing the reprocessing batter. Furthermore, thisorientation ensures the complete incorporation of the catalyst 32 andhot water 30 with the rework 22 that is placed in the mixer 42.Furthermore, the specific orientation of the rotating tines 48 allow fora kneading action of the reprocessing batter. Though not shown, thestationary tines 50 may also have a similar orientation to furtherassist in the kneading or the working of the reprocessing batter.Moreover, it is preferred that the mixing speed within the mixer 42increase over the 60-90 second mixing period. In this way the rework 22may be more efficiently mixed to incorporate the catalyst 32 and water30 therein.

[0028] With reference again to FIG. 2, once the reprocessing batter isprocessed to an acceptable specific gravity, a pump 56 pumps thereprocessed batter to a heat exchanger 58. A valve 60 is placed in linebetween pump 56 and heat exchanger 58 to control the flow of thereprocessing batter. The heat exchanger 58 is preferably a glycol-typedevices which removes the heat from the reprocessed batter in acontinuous and controlled manner. The pump 56, heat exchanger 58 andvalve 60 are controlled by a controller 62 to ensure that the heattransfer from the reprocessed batter is at the desired rate. Withreference to FIG. 6, the heat removal from the reprocessed batter ispreferably a generally linear reduction from the temperature of the hotwater down to a temperature of approximately 40 to 50 degrees Fahrenheitin a time interval of approximately 30 minutes. The discharge of heatexchanger 58 is coupled to an acceptable storage unit 64. A valve 66 maybe used between heat exchanger 58 and storage unit 64 to control theflow of the reprocessing batter. Once in the storage unit 64, thereprocessed batter is held at the approximately 40 degrees Fahrenheitfor further use in the process.

[0029] When needed, the reprocessed batter is removed from the storageunit 64 and transported to a mixer to produce a new batter. Thereprocessed batter need merely be pumped from the storage unit 64 sinceit still maintains a specific gravity between 0.80 and 0.90. As such,continues rework fermentation system 40 is a self-contained module thatmay be readily incorporated into an existing facility. Due to the factthat the reprocessed batter is in a slurry, a pump 56 may be used tomove the reprocessed batter from unit to unit as opposed to a manualmovement in a trough or other container by human power or a conveyorsystem. As presently preferred, pump 56 is a positive displacement withstainless steel wheels. Such positive displacement pump minimizes anycavitation problems which might arise during pumping or the reprocessingbatter.

[0030] In accordance with the present invention, the rework 22 may bereused at a very high rate in a new batter. This being the case, thecost of producing laminated dough may be significantly reduced by thesaving of such reworks 22. Furthermore, the time needed to move from themixing stage 14 to the final processing stage 18 is greatly reduced bythe use of the reprocessed batter. The reduction of fermentation periodof approximately 12-24 hours to a fermentation period of approximately4-6 hours or less as required by a specific application also includes adramatic decrease in production costs and an increase in productionspeed. Furthermore, the creation of a reprocessing batter with has aspecific gravity preferably no less than 0.40, and even after beingstored preferably not greater than 1.0, allows the reprocessing batterto be pumped from unit to unit. This allows for the increased ability offully automating the system of creating a reprocessing batter. Thisadvantage also decreases the time and human labor required in the reuseof rework. Additionally, the consistency of the reprocessing batter isnearly the same from batch to batch using the presently disclosedmethod. Therefore, the discretion and possible mistakes or errors of thebaker would be eliminated by the use of the presently disclosed catalystand method.

[0031] The invention being thus described, it will be obvious that thesame may be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regardedas a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all suchmodifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are intendedto be included within the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for the reclamation and use of reworkdough created in the process of forming a final good comprising thesteps of: providing a rework dough; adding water at a first temperatureabove ambient temperature and a catalyst to said rework dough; mixingtogether said rework, said catalyst, and said water to form areprocessed dough batter, thereby raising the temperature of saidreprocessed batter to a temperature which is substantially equal to thatof said first temperature; cooling said reprocessed batter to a secondtemperature; and adding said reprocessed batter to a new batch ofbatter.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein said cooling to said secondtemperature is done in a controlled manner with regards to time andrate.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein said reprocessed dough batter isheld at said second temperature until said reprocessed dough batter isadded to said new batch of dough in a ratio of approximately 1.3:1. 4.The method of claim 1, wherein said hot water is added to said doughreworks at a temperature in the range of about 80 degrees Fahrenheit toabout 110 degrees Fahrenheit.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein thetemperature of said hot water is between approximately 90 and 105degrees Fahrenheit.
 6. The method claim 1, wherein said catalystcomprises dextrose, sugar, wheat gluten, an enzyme and a carrier.
 7. Themethod of claim 6, wherein said enzyme is L-cystine.
 8. The method ofclaim 6, wherein said carrier is selected from the group consisting offlour and soy.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein said catalystpreferably comprises about 58-62% of sugar, 18-22% of dextrose, 8-12% ofwheat gluten, 0.75-1.50% of L-cystine; and 8-12% of flour by weight. 10.The method of claim 1, wherein said batch of reprocessed batter includesapproximately 33-38% said water, 58-62% said rework dough and 3-6% ofsaid catalyst by weight.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein said secondtemperature is in a range of 38 to 54 degrees Fahrenheit.
 12. The methodof claim 11, wherein said second temperature is preferably about 40 to50 degrees Fahrenheit.
 13. The method of claim 12, wherein said secondtemperature is achieved by the steps of: pumping said reprocessed doughbatter to a heat exchanger; cooling said reprocessed dough batter in acontrolled manner from said initial temperature to said secondtemperature in approximately 30 minutes.
 14. A catalyst for the reuse ofrework dough produced during the production of baked goods to produce areprocessed batter comprising dextrose, sugar, wheat gluten, an enzymeand a carrier.
 15. The catalyst of claim 14, wherein said enzyme isL-cystine.
 16. The catalyst of claim 14, wherein said carrier isselected from the group consisting of flour and soy.
 17. The catalyst ofclaim 16, wherein said catalyst preferably comprises about 58-62% ofsugar, 18-22% of dextrose, 8-12% of wheat gluten, 0.75-1.50% ofL-cystine, and 8-12% of flour by weight.
 18. The catalyst of claim 16,wherein about 20 pounds of said catalyst preferably comprises about 12pounds of sugar, 4 pounds of dextrose, 2 pounds of wheat gluten, 4ounces of L-cystine, and 2 pounds of flour.
 19. A system to reclaimrework for use in producing a dough comprising: a mixer adapted to mix arework, hot water and a catalyst into a reprocessed batter; a heatexchanger adapted to cool said reprocessed batter; a first transportsystem to move said reprocessed batter from said mixer to said heatexchanger; a holding tank adapted to store said reprocessed batter at agiven temperature; and a second transport system to move saidreprocessed batter from said heat exchanger to said holding tank. 20.The system of claim 19, wherein said mixer includes a mixing vat capableof mixing said rework, said hot water and said catalyst into ahomogenous mixture in a mixing time period of about 90 seconds or less.